Canadians and the War in the Air 1914-1918

Canadians and the War in the Air1914-1918

Module objective: Guided by both research and inquiry-based questions, students will explore the significance of the Great War flying operations, using primary source evidence to consider the causes and consequences of new technologies, as well as bringing the war to civilians.

Intended audience: Grades 10-12

Primary HTC addressed: Historical Significance

Secondary HTCs addressed: Cause and Consequence

Interested in combining the Lest We Forget project with some activities from this module? Here are links to the service files of two soldiers whose individual stories connect with this module’s topic:

Problem overview

Powered airplanes stand out among new 20th century technologies that brought global change. The introduction of aircraft in large numbers and the militarization of the air forever changed the nature of warfare during the First World War. Canadian pilots like Billy Bishop and William Barker formed part of that story, standing out among the most famous and decorated Allied First World War ‘‘aces”. Unlike soldiers in the Canadian Corps, Canadian flyers served as individual volunteers with the British Royal Flying Corps, later renamed the Royal Air Force. The war in the air is closely intertwined with events on the ground and at sea, but the story is often told separately. In fact, these modern “Knights of the Air” spent most of their time shooting down the slow, vulnerable reconnaissance aircraft upon which the ground battle depended. Observers in reconnaissance planes searched out targets for modern long range artillery, gathered information on enemy movement, front line positions, supply and command areas, and the location of the enemy’s artillery. Later on aerial photography enabled survey engineers to create excellent modern maps of the front lines and rear areas. This state-of-the-art mapping made possible the careful planning and effective long-range accurate artillery fire associated with Allied and Canadian victories at Flers-Courcelette in 1916, Vimy Ridge in 1917 and the Hundred Days in 1918. ​The advent of aerial bombing of enemy bases, cities and towns also added new dimensions to modern war, both practically in the development of civil defence systems for home defence especially in Britain and Germany, and morally because of the extension of the fighting to the homes of the civilians. Similarly, maritime patrols, anti-submarine operations and air defence against aerial bombing of cities and factories required huge organizations, with thousands of aircraft manned by hundreds of thousands of men by the middle of the war.

Problem background

Powered flight was in its infancy in 1914, but it matured very rapidly as nations sought to win advantage in the air. In 1914 aircraft were frail things with limited range and power. By 1918 huge four-engine long-ranged bombers possessed sufficient range to cross the Atlantic. Aircraft played a critical role in several distinct fields of operations during the war: reconnaissance and artillery observation, air superiority/air defence, strategic bombing, attacking base installations and transport networks behind the front, direct attacks against enemy front line units, ( tactical airpower) and maritime air operations.

Aerial reconnaissance quickly emerged as a key military role for aircraft, helping shape the outcome of the first battles of the war in 1914. When the Western Front stalemated, artillery target spotting, photo-reconnaissance, and mapping became crucial to army activities. Victory on the ground depended on controlling the airspace above to see into opposing territory and deny such observation to the enemy. The struggle for control of the air began immediately, and soon “fighter” aircraft were developed to protect friendly reconnaissance aircraft – and shoot-down the opponents. It was these new “Knights of the Air”, the gallant fighter pilots in their fast machines, which captivated the popular imagination and came to define the new air war. By 1915 aircraft were also bombing enemy army bases, rail yards, and supplies behind the front in what became known as “interdiction” attacks, and by mid-war specially designed aircraft were being developed to attack enemy ground forces directly in front of friendly troops (tactical airpower). So achieving “air superiority” – to facilitate all this activity by one side while denying it to the enemy – became a goal of airmen.​But other forms of aerial warfare quickly developed as well. In the winter of 1914-1915, the Germans began bombing British cities using Zeppelin airships. This marked the beginnings of strategic bombing: the use of airpower to attack the enemy nation directly. Fighters were soon deployed to try to stop these bombers. By the time the Germans came back to attack British cities in the winter of 1917 with four-engine bombers, a modern air defence system was in place, with anti-aircraft guns, searchlights, sound-based early warning stations, and night-fighter squadrons.Aircraft were also used in the war at sea. Airships and floatplanes were used for long ranged reconnaissance for fleets, while new aircraft types were developed to help track and attack enemy submarines. By 1917 the British had also begun to develop prototype aircraft carriers, and launched one sea-based raid on the German Zeppelin sheds at Tondern in July 1918.

Canada’s roleThere was no Canadian air force until the final months of the First World War. However, roughly 22,000 Canadians served in Britain’s Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service (after 1 April 1918 joined together as the Royal Air Force).​Canadians served in all aspects of the air war, but they distinguished themselves as fighter pilots. Five of the top ten Aces of the British Empire were Canadians: Billy Bishop, Raymond Collishaw, James McCudden, William Barker and Donald MacLaren. Most Canadian flyers served with the RFC, primarily on the Western Front – where Billy Bishop earned his Victoria Cross in 1917. He went on to be the highest scoring British Ace of the war, but remains a controversial figure. There was never any independent confirmation, or verification from German sources (which are unusually complete), for the dawn raid on the airfield that won him his VC. William Barker earned his VC in Italy for single-handedly battling over forty German fighter aircraft and downing four in the process. Raymond Collishaw was the most successful fighter pilot of the Royal Naval Air Service. He commanded the famous No. 10 Squadron of all-black Sopwith Triplanes in early 1917, flown almost exclusively by Canadians. Canadians also played a unique role in the advent of British strategic bombing. Most of the pilots of No. 3 Wing, RNAS, which began bombing of Germany in the fall of 1916 from bases in eastern France, were Canadian.​A separate Canadian Air Force was formed in 1918, and had two squadrons operational by the time the war ended. Neither of these saw active service. Attempts to sustain Canada’s fledgling service failed in the immediate aftermath of the war to end all wars.

In the end, Canadians flyers were everywhere in the Great War. By 1918 fully one quarter of RAF aircrew were Canadian, and even more were on the way. By 1917 the RFC/RAF had a well-developed flying training system in operation in southern Ontario, which, by 1918, was producing 280 graduates a month. To support these schools the British built an aircraft manufacturing plant in Toronto that produced over 3,000 aircraft before the war ended. These efforts led to the formation of an independent Canadian Air Force just after the war in 1920.

Key questions and debates

The two student activities in this module are designed to address the key questions and debates surrounding the topic, and are framed by the guideposts to historical thinking for each of the historical thinking concepts ​addressed in the module. Activities are intended to be completed in order. Please click below to see an activity overview, guiding questions, and additional topics/questions the teacher may introduce.

Students will explore the role of Canadians in the air war to understand how air forces influenced major Canadian events on the Western Front.

Culminating activity/assessment

​To demonstrate understanding of the significance of the air war in WW1, students will review select textbook entries on WW1 pilots and create a timeline to identify what was important in which decades. Students must then create an entry for a textbook 100 years from now, communicating what they think students will need to know about the air war in the First World War – 200 years from the time it occurred.

Students demonstrating sophisticated thinking will be able to express that the significance of the air war will vary across groups and over time. Students should also be able to articulate through this module their understanding that the air war is significant because it led to the new ability to bring the war to civilians, and to major changes in technology.